Her Muddy Footprints
by DxCxS2
Summary: Jade doesn't look at me when I enter. She is laying down on their old sofa, holding several of her mothers flowers above her. Angrily, she cuts and jabs at them with her scissors, little petals and flecks of green falling on her face.


Her mom had called earlier to see if she was with me. I replied that she wasn't. I asked what was wrong.

"Oh nothing" she said dismissing me. I knew she had only called as a last resort. That's why I'm driving over to her house. I'm one of those people, those people who really knows her. I know her voice, her eyes, her skin, her smile. I know her whispers at night, I know her tears, I know her breath in the morning, I know her heartbeat. I've never known anyone like I've known Jade.

She lives about twenty minutes away from me, but if there's traffic it only takes fifteen. I let the radio play, and drum my fingers along the wheel. I'm pretty sure I know where she is. I turn onto Jade's block, looking at mansion after mansion. They truly are beautiful houses. I remember the first time I drove to her house I was some what intimidated. As I drive down her block I see her car. It's a ways down from her house. I drive by slowly, but there's no one in it. I drive up to her house and park on the street. The sun is setting just about now.

I would walk up to her door, but I already know that will do me no good with her mother home. She would just shoo me away. Instead I walk around to the side of the house. As I pass the garden I notice the bushes branches are broken, and flowers have been stomped down. I step carefully through the garden to get around to the side of the house. I walk to the back of the house where the pool is, and I find moody footprints. I sigh. I doubt Jade's mother even looked around the house for Jade. I doubt she even ventured downstairs. I follow the muddy foot prints into the house, and down into the basement. I can hear faint music, and something breaking. I knock on the door. Everything falls to silence. I knock again. When there is no response I just enter.

I shut the door slowly behind myself, trying not to make too much noise. Jade doesn't look at me when I enter. She is laying down on their old sofa, holding several of her mothers flowers above her. Angrily, she cuts and jabs at them with her scissors, little petals and flecks of green falling on her face. The music resumed as I entered the room.

Slowly, I walk over to sit next to her head, her feet hanging off the arm of the couch.

"She didn't tell you, did she?" Jade asks after a few moments. I pick out the bits of petals from her hair.

"What would she have told me?" I ask. She starts to slice slowly up the spine of a flower.

"That I disappeared again" she answers. I sigh.

"She never tells me you disappear" I explain. "She just calls as asks if you're with me."

"Because obviously I'm only ever with you. I don't have other places I go, and things I do" Jade retorts.

"Hey I never said that" I snap "I'm only saying what happens." She doesn't say anything for a few moments, but focuses on the flower. She watches carefully as she cuts off each and every petal. She's so beautiful when she's focused. The song changes. It's slow and soft.

"Beck" she breathes, so softly that I forget how terrifying she can be. "How'd you know I was down here?"

"You're muddy foot prints were easy to follow" I reply and she frowns.

"Dammit."

I shrug. We're quiet again. Sometimes Jade needs the quiet. She's so chaotic already, that sometimes moments like this allow her to sort herself.

"We fought again" she tells me. I run my fingers through her long black hair.

"About?" I press gently. Not hard enough to make her angry, but enough to let her know that I care, that I want to hear.

"She says that being an artist isn't a real job" Jade begins, her voice hardening "I told her it is, that I plan on going to school for art. My dad's fine as long as I go to school, but my mom disagrees. She says that I won't find a man with a real job at an art school."

Hearing her say what her mom thinks is always difficult. I've always known that Mrs. West didn't like me, but when I hear how easily she disregards me I get frustrated. I take in a deep breath, and let it pass. This isn't about me.

"Well if your dad is behind it that's good" I tell her.

"He's not behind it," she corrects me, "but he's not opposed to it." I nod, and let her sit and slice up the flowers in silence. I continue to pick out the petals in piece. The thing I've noticed Jade needs more than anything is a person who isn't afraid of her. I'm not afraid to be quiet, but I'm also not afraid to speak up.

I let us sit in silence for a while before I do anything. Carefully and quickly I grab the scissors from her and pull them away. She glares at me, but I know moping and stewing forever will only make her worse.

"Come on," I say "We're not sitting in this basement anymore. All done" I say, taking her hand and tugging on her slightly.

"But it's dark here" she moans.

"It's dark out there too" I argue as I attempt to pull her into a sitting position. She groans and gets up. Jade gives me a terrifying glare, but I shrug it off. This is the moment in which I win, or she wins. If she wins she stays here for a few more hours, but I can't let that happen.

After a few minutes she pulls on her boots, and we leave her house. She starts to head to her car, but I take her wrist and pull her in the direction of my car.

"We're taking my car" I tell her. At this point she is seething, but I ignore it. We head to my car, and I start to drive. It's so dark on her street, the only lights coming from the windows of the mansions around us.

"Do you even know where we're going?" she snaps after we've been driving for a few minutes. I nod. "Can you not vocalize it?"

"I just wanted to go for a drive" I say. I turning up the radio.

Her face twists with anger as she turns away from me, resting her elbow on the windowsill. I glance out of the corner of my eyes at her reflection and watch as the anger of her face dissipates. A faint smile grows on her lips as we drive down Sunset Boulevard. It's so dreary at her house, dead- 'not the good kind either' Jade would have added if I had said it allowed. Jade's a night person, and here the night is alive.

I continue to drive down the street, and her eyes are lit up like the lights that she can't help, but gawk at. People rarely ever get to see Jade love things, be intoxicated by them. They don't know what she likes, what she's like.

_Where are you? And I'm so sorry. I can not sleep, I can not dream tonight. _

She turns to me when she realizes what song is playing.

_And I stared I counted- the webs from all the spiders. Catching things and eating their insides. _

_I Miss You_ by Blink 182 was playing the first time we ever kissed. It was during our first Hollywood Arts' kick back. I had asked her to come with me. Everything was fine before we got there- she became particularly moody then.

"Okay" I took a deep breath and pulled her aside. "What's wrong?"

"This sucks" she said. I wasn't expecting her to be so brash, but I barley knew Jade then. Noticing my astonishment, she decided to explain. "I hate those people, I hate these shoes, and I hate this music."

"Well... I don't really know how to fix that" I stumbled, unsure of what to do. Dates never went like this for me. Girls were normally smitten, and the rest was easy, but this, this was difficult- she was difficult.

"Yeah well I'm going to the bathroom" she said before stomping off. I wasn't sure what to do when Cat approached me.

"How's it going?" she pressed, batting her eyelashes. Cat's always been close to Jade, and Cat liked me more than the other guys. She said the other guys were scary.

"Terribly!" I exclaimed "She says she hates the people, and her shoes, and the music! What do I do about that?"

"Well" Cat began looking at the ground and rocking back and forth on her tip toes. "Easy peezy! Just get rid of her shoes!"

"She can't go barefoot!" I argued.

"Why not?" Cat laughed. "If she hates her shoes..."

"The other problems" I said cutting her off before she could say anything ridiculous.

"Um" she mumbled, her eyebrows furrowing as she thought. She bit her lip, before her eyes lit up. "I know!" she shouted. "Put on music she likes! Like she likes spiders, and blood, and darkness, and death!"

"I don't know songs about spiders, blood, darkness and-" I started, but I was interrupted.

"I know a song about all those things!" Robbie said, popping up out of no where. This was before we knew Robbie, so I was more than taken aback when a strange boy with a puppet popped up telling me knew a song about spiders, blood, darkness, and death.

"Can you dance to it?" Cat demanded.

"Yes!" Robbie replied. Cat squealed in delight.

"Let's go!" she shouted, dragging Robbie away. I remember how smitten he looked as they walked off. Almost as panicked as I looked when Jade returned.

"You should take off your shoes" I said nervously. She looked at me incredulously. I started to sweat. I turned, and saw Robbie out of the corner of my eye. He was standing next to the DJ as he shot me a big thumbs up.

"Ah..." I began grabbing for something to say "I think you'll like the next song."

"I hate all these songs..." she groaned, but I took her wrist and led her to the dance floor.

"I think you'll like it" I repeated with more confidence. "I really do."

_Apple Bottom Jeans _was ending just as we stepped onto the dance floor. She looked at me expectantly, but her eyes began to change as Robbie's song began

I took her hips. She took my shoulders. We began to sway.

"I don't really hate this song" she said awkwardly. We swayed.

"No?" I replied. I pulled her a bit closer to me. "I thought you hated all these songs?" I teased. She glared at me, but I smiled, and after a few moments she smiled too.

"I would like to carve out the heart of everyone on this dance floor" she said laying her head against my chest. "With a plastic spoon" she added. She looked up at me. "Everyone here, but you."

We kissed.

I smile as I think back, as I watch her now and know how she can jump from furious to happy in moments. We drive back to my house and stay up late watching movies and eating red jello because it make our mouths look bloody. When it gets particularly late, we climb into bed, and she lays her head on my chest and I put my arm around her.

"Thank you" she whispers when all the lights are out. When I can't see her anymore, but I can feel the faint quiver in her voice.

I kiss the top of her head. "Don't" I tell her.

"There's a lot of people I'd like to drown in their own fluids," she whispers to me "but not you."

"I love you too" I whisper before she falls asleep on my chest.


End file.
